Category: Coaching

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Coaching communication public speaking

Try this 1 mindfulness technique to reduce stammering

When smart people start to stammer…

…it’s often because they’re thinking 10 steps ahead!

🤔 They’re thinking about what they’re going to say in 5 minutes.
🤔 They’re thinking about what someone might ask them in 2 minutes.
🤔 They’re even thinking about what they might forget to say!

All that thinking? It’s what smart people do!

But thinking about a zillion things while you’re talking takes being “present” out of your “presentation!”

In a public speaking consultation for a smart person who stammers, I borrow an exercise from the world of theater.

It’s an exercise called “actioning.” It’s both a theater technique + a mindfulness technique rolled into one exercise.

If you’re a smart person who’s developed a stammer, try giving actioning a try. It gives you a focus point, so you can stay present in your presentation.

Actioning gets you out of your head. It usually gets good results. Here’s how it works:

Think of an action verb. An action verb is a word that fits between the words “I” and “you.

Think I “hate” you or I “love” you! Except instead of verbs like “hate” and “love,” think of a verb that’s more appropriate to the tone of what you want your audience to do, think or feel.

Then, instead of focusing on each word that you’re saying, focus on the action verb as you speak. That way, your words will flow out of your mouth a little more easily, because you’re not in your head.

You’re not thinking about every single word that you’re going to say. You’re thinking about the emotional power of those words.

For example, you might pick an action verb like persuade. Or you might think of another action verb as you go on in your speech or presentation.

Do you want to intrigue people? Do you want to mystify people? Let your action verb guide you. Use an action verb as your focal point as you speak.

There’s a whole range of action verbs that you can use to help express what you’re trying to communicate. Try actioning because it can help you get out of your head and focus more on the emotional intent behind the words that you’re saying.

And if you’d like to learn more about actioning, read Actions: The Actor’s Thesaurus by Marina Calderone and Maggie Lloyd-Williams.

Amazon Link to book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076DQ3YQZ/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

You can draw from a wide range of action verbs that can help you stay focused and present as you speak.

What are some of your favorite action verbs to use as a focal point as you speak?

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Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

🔥🔥🔥 Laura also teaches “Presenting On Camera” – a live, interactive group class for sales and training professionals who need to shift from in-person to on-camera presentations. Call to inquire about availability and rates.

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Coaching Presentation

Public Speaking and Speaking on Camera: Why “Just Act Natural” is Bad Advice

Let me explain what I’m doing right now. I am sitting alone in a room and I am talking to a piece of glass.

And that’s why I think the advice “just act natural” is a bogus piece of public speaking advice. It’s especially egregious for anyone who has to talk in front of a camera.

That flat piece of glass that I’m staring into will suck about 10% of the emotion and energy from my face. So if I don’t bump up my personality by 10 to 20%, I’m going to come across as dead and flat on camera.

And let’s face it, there is nothing natural about this. Our cave people ancestors did not go around talking to flat pieces of glass. And when it comes to public speaking, they didn’t stand up in front of large crowds of strangers, either!

So “just act natural” is “just bogus advice” for when you’re on camera, but also for when you’re speaking on stage or in front of a class or big meeting.

Instead of “acting natural” — try bumping up your emotional energy. That way, your audience can see that emotion in your face as you talk on camera. Or feel your enthusiasm when you present in person.

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Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

🔥🔥🔥 Laura also teaches “Presenting On Camera” – a live, interactive group class for sales and training professionals who need to shift from in-person to on-camera presentations. Call to inquire about availability and rates.

616-284-1688

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Coaching communication

What can you do when you’re presenting and you freeze?

Big Muscle Movement

What can you do when you’re onstage and you freeze?

Try a BIG MUSCLE MOVEMENT.

What to do:

Find a BIG MUSCLE MOVEMENT that works for you.

It should be something you can do easily, that you enjoy doing, and yet looks great or reasonable on stage.

Practice this technique. Do it daily. And make it part of your pre-speech warm up exercise.

If you ever find yourself flailing on stage, you can perform it on the spot.

For me, I like breathing from my diaphragm (that’s a big muscle!) and spreading my arms wide (more big muscles!)

Some people like the butt clench. Your butt may not be huge, but the gluteus maximus are huge muscles!

I’ve seen entertainers spread their arms and twirl when they got lost. (Singers can pull this move off: CEOs probably can’t!)

Why the BIG MUSCLE MOVEMENT technique works:

When you feel afraid or panicky – you lose fine motor skills (small muscles) — but gain large muscle response.

Freeze, fight, or flight. That’s your evolutionary response kicking in. Take advantage of it.

Use your large motor skills to calm yourself down on stage.

What’s your go-to BIG MUSCLE MOVEMENT?

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Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

🔥🔥🔥 Laura also teaches “Presenting On Camera” – a live, interactive group class for sales and training professionals who need to shift from in-person to on-camera presentations. Call to inquire about availability and rates.

616-284-1688

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Coaching communication crisis video web meetings

Try the Turkey Tail Technique in your next Zoom Meeting

Turkey Tail Technique for on camera presentations

You need to maintain eye contact with a reporter or interviewer during an on-camera appearance. And yet, you need to cover your main talking points. And stick to an agenda and stay on time.

And you don’t want to have wandering or shifty eyes while you’re talking on-camera! What to do, what to do? How can you look at the camera and still keep focused on your main talking points?

Try using what I call ‘THE TURKEY TAIL TECHNIQUE.”

In the Turkey Tail, you put each agenda item or main talking point on one post it note. Stick the post it notes across your laptop or monitor. Fan the post it notes out like a Turkey Tail!

That way, you can subtly and evenly glance at your agenda items without having wild or wandering eyes. You can maintain good eye contact with the camera, and still keep on top of your agenda and main talking points.

Try the Turkey Tail Technique in your next Zoom interview or Zoom meeting

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Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

🔥🔥🔥 Laura also teaches “Presenting On Camera” – a live, interactive group class for sales and training professionals who need to shift from in-person to on-camera presentations. Call to inquire about availability and rates.

616-284-1688

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Coaching Presentation public speaking

Why might speakers cross their legs on stage?

standing with legs crossed while presenting

A woman stands on stage. She’s got her head down as she reads from her index cards. She’s tugging at her scarf and hair with her left hand. Her voice trembles and shakes. Then, she crosses her legs as she stands.

If you talk to many body language experts, they’ll tell you that crossing your legs while standing is a sign that you’re comfortable. But in this case, it’s not. The woman is nervous.

But why do we see anxious speakers cross their legs on stage? Isn’t leg-crossing supposed to be a sign that they’re comfortable with their audiences?

Consider the context. When you see a lot of other behaviors that signal fear – head down, trembling voice, and self-soothing gestures like playing with scarves and hair – the cross-legged stance can be considered yet another form of pacifying behavior.

It’s also a pose. Crossed legs are meant to signal comfort to the audience.

However, standing while crossing your legs isn’t an ideal posture when you’re delivering a talk. It can prevent you from getting the full breath support you need. It can contribute to your trembling voice.

Worse – standing cross legged while you’re nervous makes it look like you’ve got to pee!

If you find yourself standing cross-legged on stage, uncross. Widen your stance. Look up at your audience. Smile and take a breath.

You’ve got this.

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Coaching communication Presentation public speaking

Weird is where the growth happens

A client was rehearsing her presentation. She stood on stage with her arms crossed in front of her. I stopped her.

“Try standing with your palms out,” I told her.

She did, then stopped.

“That feels weird,” she said.

“Good,” I said. “Try it again.”

She did.

“Still feels weird,” she said.

“Again.”

“Still weird.”

“Again.”

Weird is natural when you’re learning a new approach. When you’re training new muscles, it’s bound to feel uncomfortable.

It’s weird.

It’s why we drill and rehearse. Until it feels natural, it’s going to feel weird.

It might be comfortable to do what you’ve done before, but weird is where the growth happens.

Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

If you’re a LinkedIn Premium or Lynda.com member, her courses are free! If you’re not a member, you can either become a member or buy classes à la carte.

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Blogging Coaching communication content ideas design Education PowerPoint PowerPoint Presentation Presentation public speaking social media Twitter video

How to transform presentation content into video social media posts

Canva for Video Posts
Canva for Video Posts

Here’s a question about presentations and videos I started to get a lot last month. I’ll paraphrase it:

Hey Laura. How do you do those square, short, silent little videos that you share on LinkedIn and Twitter?

The answer is: really easily! I use a tool called Canva. Update: And here’s a direct link so you can use Canva to create presentations and slides.

As a stand & deliver trainer, I have oodles of presentation content. Canva lets me repurpose bits and pieces of this content for easy social media sharing.

Yes, Canva excels at quick online video creation. I’m finding a lot of people use Canva — but we tend not to think of using it for video. We tend to think of it for images.

I’m also thinking a lot of people have PowerPoint presentations. Why not try using Canva to repurpose your presentation content for social media posts?

Canva lets you do this in a way that’s super easy to accomplish. I show you how in this two minute video. Enjoy!

Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

If you’re a LinkedIn Premium or Lynda.com member, these courses are free! If you’re not a member, you can either become a member or buy each of these classes à la carte.

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Coaching communication content ideas Education PowerPoint PowerPoint Presentation Presentation public speaking video

Introduce emotional relevance to your presentations

Brain Rules by John Medina

“We don’t pay attention to boring things.”

John Medina, Brain Rules

Sounds basic, right?

But how do you NOT be boring when you’re speaking or presenting?

Medina tells us to be sure to introduce something emotionally relevant every 10 minutes.

At least every 10 minutes!

If we don’t, we risk losing the attention and interest of our audiences….because….

“We don’t pay attention to boring things.”

What can you do to shake things up for your audience?

Click on the video to discover 5 things you can do…in under 51 seconds!

Laura Bergells is a professional story finder. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks. Check out her online courses at LinkedIn Learning.

If you’re a LinkedIn Premium or Lynda.com member, these courses are free! If you’re not a member, you can either become a member or buy each of these classes à la carte.

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Coaching communication design PowerPoint PowerPoint Presentation Presentation public speaking

Never end your presentation with Q&A.

Never end your presentation with a Q&A.

Got that? Don’t end your next presentation by saying, “Any questions?”

There’s no need to announce that it’s time for questions and answers.

You can do better.

Always plan a strong closing.

If you’re planning a Q&A session, you can have it near the end, but not at the end.

Answer audience questions, then deliver your closing statement.

Don’t risk letting your super awesome presentation drift off into whatever might be on the mind of the last person who asked a question.

Wrap it up, partner. Put a bow on that presentation. 🎁

Consider this: I cover five strong closing techniques in my public speaking foundations course on LinkedIn Learning.

The full course is one hour. It’s a great resource to revisit before your next big speech or presentation, free for LinkedIn Premium Members.

Check it out. >>> http://linkedin-learning.pxf.io/JAb4N

Categories
Coaching communication crisis public speaking

Answering Q&A questions and the path to wisdom…

answering Q&A with wisdom

Ah, Q&A. The “question and answer” portion of your presentation, where anything can happen!

Instead of dealing with a Q&A hog, let’s say someone in your audience asks you a brilliant question. It’s timely and topical! It’s directly related to your content! At this point, your answer can fall into three categories.

1. Hey, I know all about that!

2. I don’t know, but I can find out.

3. I don’t know.

Each category comes with its own set of challenges. Let’s explore each.

  1. I know all about that! On its face, this category seems easy to answer, but it’s not. In a Q&A, you’ll need to be brief. You must curb any tendency to give a comprehensive, long-winded answer. Being brief can be difficult when you know something thoroughly. Deliver a concise and concrete answer, then move on to the next question.
  2. I don’t know, but I can find out. Category two is a little easier. Your answer can be something like, “I don’t know, but I know I can find out. Give me your contact information, and I can get the answer to you after the presentation.” Move to the next question or closing, then follow up with the questioner when you said you would.
  3. I don’t know. Category three should be the easiest of all. It contains 3 of the 4 short statements that lead to wisdom. You can say one to three of them, as appropriate. Practice saying this out loud, every day.

    “I’m sorry. I don’t know. Does anyone else know?”

But why is “I’m sorry. I don’t know. Does anyone else know?” so difficult for so many presenters to say? I suspect it’s because they feel because if they are leading a discussion, they simply MUST know everything about it., or at least appear to.

But remember, you’re only leading the discussion. You’re not monopolizing it. You’re not expected to know everything. And no one likes a know-it-all.

Consider the four statements that lead to wisdom:

  1. “I don’t know” is one of the four statements that leads to wisdom. Practice saying it every day. It can help ease any discomfort you may feel when tempted to pontificate on a subject you know nothing about. Audiences will appreciate your honesty and simplicity. It’s refreshing.
  2. “I need help” is the second statement that leads to wisdom. Ask for help when you need it. “Does anybody else know?” might yield a helpful response from your audience or allies. If no one else answers, you might feel inspired to smile and say, “It looks like I’m not alone in not knowing the answer to your question!”
  3. “I’m sorry” is the third statement that leads to wisdom. You may or may not feel inclined to preface your “I don’t know” with “I’m sorry”. If you’re not sorry, don’t say you are. If you are, do so.
  4. Fittingly, “I was wrong” is the fourth statement that leads to wisdom. And it’s the one statement you won’t have to say during your presentation if you answer difficult questions truthfully and concisely.

Outside of Q&A, practice saying the four statements that lead to wisdom:

  1. I don’t know.
  2. I’m sorry.
  3. I was wrong.
  4. I need help.

Get comfortable saying these phrases. If you want to be happy and wise, you’ll be saying them a lot in a lifetime! Beyond wisdom, you’ll gain empathy and understanding through regularly saying these phrases.

Good luck on your next Q&A!

For your consideration: I go over responding to difficult questions in more detail in my Crisis Communications course at LinkedIn Learning. It’s under the section: “Developing Statements”.

Check it out here: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/crisis-communication/